Circular-knitting machine



(No Model.)

M. J. DINNEEN. CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE.

No. 415,834. Patented Nov. 26, 1889.

n. PETERS.'Plloto-Limagmpher. Washington, D. c

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MICHAEL J. DINNEEN, OF LOXVELL, MASSACHUSETTS.

CIRCULAR-KNITTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 415,834, dated November 26, 1889.

' Application filed June 8, 1889. Serial No. 313,551. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be' it known that 1, MICHAEL J. DINNEEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lowell, in the county of Middlesex and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in CireulanKnitting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to circular-knitting machines; and it consists in the devices and combinations hereinafter described and claimed, which enable a circular spring-needle knitting machine to knit one or more courses of a yarn of one color and then one or more courses of a yarn of a difiierent color, and to change automatically from one color to another by first introducing one yarn and immediately thereafter severing the yarn previously being knitted.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is an isometric view of so much of a circular spring-needle knitting-machine as is necessary for an understanding of my invention with my improvement attached thereto, showing a part of a needle-cylinder and its needles and the loop-wheel and its stand; Fig. 2, a broken plan of the parts of my improvement, partly in section, showing the yarn-guide levers, the upper fluted roll, the table on which said levers are supported, the patterntape, the pattern-wheel, its ratchet, the pawlrod, its pawl, spring, and anti-friction pulley, the pattern-tape, the carrierovheel, and the bracket which supports the same and on which the same is adjustable; Fig. 3, a section on the line 3 in Fig. 2 of the patternwheel and a part of the table which supports the yarn-guide levers, showing said yarnguide levers, the pattern-tape, and a part of said table in side elevation, and showing the fluted rolls in end elevation and one of the springs, partly in dotted lines, in side elevation; 4., a section on the line 4 t in Fig.

2; Fig. 5, a section of a part of the loop-wheel and of a part of the cylinder parallel with one of the leaves of said loop-wheel, showing also a yarn being operated upon by the ma chine and two other yarns in readiness to be introduced into the machine; Fig. 6, an isometric view of one of the leaves of the loopwheel provided with a cutting-edge; Figs. 7 and 8, respectively, a side elevation and an wheel stand I), and loop-wheel B, except that the leaves of the loop-wheel are sharpened into cutting-edges, as hereinafter described, are of the usual construction and operation and are used with other parts commonly used in circular spring-needle knitting-machines,

including a sinker-wheel or divider-wheel, landing-wheel, and presser-wheel, and a pushback C. (Shown in Fig. 1.)

The yarns y (1 if, Fig. 1, of which there are two or more, three being shown, each run through a separate yarn guide or lever G G2 G from bobbins, (not shown,) each yarnguide being provided with a yarn-eye g g g to admit a yarn, and then under the inner end of said yarn-guide or end nearest the needle-cylinder A; then through a vertical comb H, having vertical slits h 72.2 its, each adapted to receive a yarn and keep it out of contact with the other yarns and to hold each yarn under its own yarn-guide lever, in order that it may be held thereby, as hereinafter described then between fluted rolls I I, arranged between said comb II and said needle-cylind er parallel with said comb, and from the fluted rolls over the yarn-table J to the loop-wheel or stitch-wheel B, which operates upon said yarns one at a time in'the usual manner.

The yarn-guide levers G G G are independently pivoted on a horizontal rod K, supported in a frame L, which is also pivoted at Znear the outer ends of said yarn-guide levers tobrackets m m, secured to a table M. The table M also supports the comb H, the bearings of the lower fluted roll I, and the yarn-table J, and is itself supported upon the upper part of a stand N, similar to the stand which supports the loop-wheel in the respect that it is formed in two parts, the upper part it of which is hollow and vertically adjustable on the lower part, said lower part being a vertical rod rigidly secured in the bed of the machine to enable the parts supported thereby to be raised to the proper height with reference to the loop-wheel, said upper part a being held at the proper height by means of a set-screw n which turns radially in said upper part and thrusts against said rod. The object of pivoting the frame L is to enable said frame, and with it the yarn-guide levers to be raised to pass the yarns through the yarn-eyes g g g and through the comb. After the yarns have been arranged in the yarneyes and comb-the frame is turned down on the table M and there held by turning the cap-screw until its head 0 extends over the top of said frame, said screw turning in a vertical threaded hole in the table M and having one side of its head cut away at 0 to allow the frame to be raised when the lastnamed side is turned toward the frame.

The under side of the inner end of each yarn-guide lever is provided with a transverse rib g", between which and the table M or a plate m, supported on said table M, the

' yarn belonging to said lever is clamped when the outer end of said lever is raised, as herein after described. Vhen any yarn is thus clamped, it will be broken or cut by a leaf 1) of the loop-wheel B where the yarn enters the needles.

The loop-wheel B, as above stated, performs the ordinary functions of a loop-wheel or stitch-wheel-that is, its leaves push the yarn between the needles and form loops in said yarnand at the same time its nibs b or the projecting lower ends of its leaves below the notches b of said leaves carry the yarn up under the beards a of the needles a; but to proximity to the loop-wheel and needles, in

readiness to be reintroduced into the fabric.

The yarn-table J is of a suitable shape to fill the space between the loop-wheel, the needles, and the table M, and is provided with a slotted ear j, through which passes a screw j into said table M, adjustably securing the yarn-table J to said table M. The side 7' of the yarn-table J is curved to conform to the curvature of the row of needles, and is arranged as near as possible to said needles without being in contact with them, and keeps the loose yarns and the welt or portion of previously-knit fabric placed on the needles and extending outside of the circle 7 of needles down from being caught between the loop-wheel and the needles, and the upper corner of said yarn-table is fitted as closely as possible without being in contact therewith to the loop-wheel and the needles, so that the yarn cannot fall below the loop-wheel and fail to be caught by said wheel and the needles.

All the yarns pass between the fluted rolls I I, the flutes "a" of which engage one another.

The axes of said fluted rolls are horizontal and the journals of the lower'roll I turn in suitable boxes i in the table M,while the journals of the upper roll Iturn in journal-boxes i in the frame L, above described. The journalboXes t of the upper fluted roll I are open at the top and are filled wit-h blocks 4;, Fig. 3, which bear upon the journals of said upper fluted roll, being held in contact therewith by springs 1"", which are represented as being leaf-springs secured by screws 2' to the frame L, the free ends of said springs pressing upon the blocks 1' and being preferably riveted to or otherwise secured to said block. Lifting the frame L not only raises the yarn-guide levers, as above described, but also raises the upper fluted roll I and facilitates the placing of the yarn betweenthe rolls. The fluted rolls are driven at a constant rate of speed when the machine is in operation by the friction of the yarn or yarns which, for the time being, are entering the machine, the broken yarn (having no tension placed upon it, the fluted rolls not bottoming in each other) merely standing still, bending, as shown in Fig. 10, to conform to the action of the rolls; but, when the broken yarn is unclamped the rolls will carry the free end of said broken yarn far enough to allow it to be caught by the loop-wheel and knitted into the fabric. After both yarns have entered the fabric together for a few stitches, just enough to make sure that the new yarn will not slip away from the loop-wheel and needles, the old yarn is clamped by its yarn-guide lever and cut or broken, as above described.

To the under side of the outer arm of each yarn-guide lever is secured an adjustable spring-follower g g g by means of a screw g g g, which passes through an unthreaded hole in said yarn-guide lever and enters the inner end of the nearly horizontal part of said follower, and an adjusting-screw g g Q15 turns in each lever and thrusts down upon said follower between the attachingscrew g g g and the other end of said follower to vary the distance of the lower end of said follower from its lever, the elasticity of the follower holding it constantly against the lower end of its adj listing-screw. The outer ends of the followers are bent downward to enter the pattern-grooves in the pattern-tape Q, hereinafter described. Below the outer ends of the yarn-guide levers turns the pattern-drum P, its axis being parallel with the fulcrum-rod K and its periphery being provided with as many annular grooves 19 19 12 IIO larged shoulder 19 and extending through a slot 19 in a bracket p secured by a screw p" to the same bench or stand which supports the knitting-machine proper. The

drum P and the carrier-wheel P may be setfarther apart by loosening the nut 19, which turns on the threaded outer end of the stud 19? away from the bracket p and then moving said shaft in the slot 19 away from said drum P. The stud p, after being adjusted in such a position as to strain the tape Q, may be held in position by turning said nut 19 on said stud against said bracket. The drum P and carrier-wheel P may be provided with flanges 29 p to prevent the tapefrom moving laterally on said drum and carrier-wheel. The drum P is supported and turns in journalboxes 71 in the frame at, said frame being supported on the stand N and vertically ad- 3' ustable thereon, being held by a set-screw n, which passes through a sleeve n, secured to said frame or, and thrusts against said stand N. The pattern-tape Q has a number of slots equal in number to the yarn-guide levers and to the grooves in the drum P, said slots g g being arranged at the sameintervals with said grooves and coming directly over said grooves. The lower end of each follower is beveled at g g g downward and inward toward the needle-cylinder, and is provided,

justbelow the top of the bevel on one orboth sides with shoulders or stops 9 g 9 which rest on the tape Q, when the lower ends of said followers are in the slots of said tape and limit the upward movement of the inner ends of the yarn-guide levers. When the drum P is rotated in the direction of the arrow marked thereon, the pattern-tape is carried with it, and to prevent said tape from slipping on said drum the drum is provided with a'series of radially or nearly radially projecting pins p arranged at equal intervals on said drum and entering holes q, ar-

ranged at corresponding equal intervals in said tape near the sides thereof. When the radial pins 19 and the holes q are used, the flanges p are not absolutely essential.

Each yarn-guide lever ,releases its yarn when its follower enters a pattern-slot, the front arm of said lever being raised by a leafspring g secured to the table M and pressing against the under side of said lever, and immediately afterward another lever is caused to clamp its yarn by the end of a pattern-slot striking the beveled end of its follower.

The drum P is provided with an annular ratchet p engaged by a pawl r, adjustably secured on the pawl-rod R, which slides in horizontal bearings 11 n secured to the frame a, above named. The pawl r turns on a vertical stud r on the inner end of a bolt r which passes through a longitudinal slot r in the pawl-rod R and carries a nut r on its" outer end, which, being turned, draws a shoulder 0", with which said bolt is provided, against the innerside of said pawl-rod. By this means the distance ofthe pawl from and the shoulder r and nut r act as stops to limit the motion of the pawl-rod toward the cylinder. The pawl is kept in engagement with the ratchet by the spring 4". The rod R is pressed toward the needle-cylinder by a spiral spring 1, which surrounds said rod R and is compressed between the inner hearing at of said rod and the enlarged head r of said rod. The inner end of the rod R supports an anti-friction roll 1' and the needlecylinder A has secured to it a cam a which once in every revolution of said cylinder strikes said roll and throws the pawl-rod outward and rotates the drum P an angular distance represented by one tooth of the ratchet p and moves the pattern-tape Q an equal amount. In order that the drum may not be thrown too far by the action of the pawl, the journal-boxes n are open at the top and a plug of leather or similar material a is inserted in the topsof said journal-boxes and pressed down upon the journals p of said drum by means of clamp-bars 11*, arranged above said j ournal-boxes or journal-slots and drawn by screws 19, passing through the ends of said bars on opposite sides of said journalboxes into the top of the frame a to create a friction between said plugs and said journals and to stop the drum as soon as the outward movement of the pawl-rod R stops.

The cam a has two cam-surfaces a a, one a 'of which first rotates the drum far enough to allow one of the yarn-guide levers to be operated to release its yarn, which immediately enters the machine, the inner side of the pawl-rod or its anti-friction roll then resting upon a surface a of the cam, which rest or surface a is concentric with the cylinder A, the angular length of this surface determining the distance which the two yarns the old and the newly-introduced-shall enter the machine together. When the newlyintroduced yarn has entered the fabric sufficiently, the pawl-rod is thrown farther out ward by the second cam-surface d and rotates the pattern-drum sufficiently to cause the old yarn to be clamped by its yarn-guide lever the slots of the pattern-tape lapping past each other sufficiently for this purpose.

It will be understood that the width of the different stripes of the fabric depends on the length of the slots in the pattern-tape Q-that is, that the number of courses of yarn of any color will be equal to the number of teeth of the ratchet 2 which represents the angular distance measured by the pattern-slot, which allows the yarn of that color to enter the machine, supposing the tape to be wound about the drum P.

hen it is desired to use the machine without the striping devices, the pawl-rod may be drawn outward until the hole 19 in the pawl-rod is in line with the hole 92 in the bearing n -and there held by inserting the pin 19 in both of said holes, which will. hold the pawl-rod out of engagement with the cam a, and thus allowythe yarn then running into the fabric to knit a solid color until such time as the pin 19 is withdrawn to allow the pawl-rod to be moved by the spring a into the path of said cam. The pin 19 may be conveniently attached to the machine by a chain 11 as shown in Fig. 1.

, The rolls I 1, instead of being fluted, may be covered with leather or other similar material adapted to draw the yarns by friction, and may be connected by positive mechanism with a revolving part of the machine, but, if fluted, should be used with stops 71 which may be hooks arranged to project from the top of the frame L and to be turned over the spring 1 to prevent the top roll from rising out of its journal-boxes and to be turned in the other direction when desired to remove the top roll. V

The followers g g g are each provided with an upward projection 9 which enters a corresponding recess g (shown by dotted lines in Fig. in the iind er side of its yarnguide lever to prevent said follower turning on said lever and getting out of the plane of the corresponding pattern-slot.

Instead of the pattern-tape Q, a patternchain of any desired length and provided with projections to strike the beveled ends of the followers may be carried by the drum.

The ribs 9' of the yarnguide levers may be covered with a suitable pad or may strike upon a pad of material best adapted to prevent the yarn from slipping when clamped.

The yarn-table J may be dispensed with and the yarn allowed to fall on the top of the plates at, by which the needles are clamped to the cylinder, or the ends of the yarn may be held by the suction of the current of air set in motion by the rapid revolution of the needle-cylinder at the proper place to be caught by the loop-wheel and the needles; but it is considered safer to support the severed ends of the yarn by said table J, which insures the proper introduction of the yarns into the machine.

I claim as my invention- 1. The loop-wheel having leaves provided with nibs, said leaves having their edges above said nibs sharpened to form knives, asandfor the purpose specified.

2. The combination of the needle-cylinder and needles and the loop-wheel provided with leaves having cutting-edges, as and for the purpose specified.

3. The combination of the needle-cylinder having needles, the loop-wheel, and the feed-' to be rotated by a yarn drawn between said rolls and to feed other yarns placed between said rolls, as and for the purpose specified.

6. The combination of the needle-cylinder having needles, the loop-wheel, and the feedrolls arranged one above the other, the upper of said rolls having upwardly-yielding bearings, said rolls being adapted to be rotated by a yarn drawn between the same and to feed other yarns placed between said rolls, as and for the purpose specified.

7. The combination of the needle-cylinder having needles, the loop-wheel, the feed-rolls adapted to be rotated by a yarn drawn between the same and to feed other yarns placed between said rolls, and the yarn-table arranged between said rolls, needles, and loopwheel, as andfor the purpose specified.

8. The combination of the needlewcylinder provided with needles, the loop-wheel, feedrolls, a table, and yarn-guides pivoted thereon and adapted to clamp between their ends and said table yarns, asa'nd for the purpose specified.

9. The combination of the needle-cylinder provided with needles the loop-wheel, feedrolls, a table, yarn-guides pivoted thereon and adapted to clamp between their ends and said -table yarns, and having downwardly-projecting rear ends, the pattern-tape, the patterndrum provided with a ratchet, a pawl-rod carrying a pawl, a spring forcing said pawlrod toward said cylinder, and a cam secured on said cylinder and adapted to push said pawl-rod and turn said pattern-drum'at every revolution of said cylinder, as and for the purpose specified.

10. The combination of the needle-cylinder provided with needles, the loop-wheel, feedrolls, a table, yarn-guides supported thereon and adapted to clamp between their inner ends and said table yarns, and having adjustable followers provided with downwardlyprojecting rear ends, a pattern-tape having slots to receive saiddownwardly projecting rear ends, the pattern-drum and the carrierroll, said pattern-drum having a ratchet, a pawl-rod carrying a pawl, a spring to force said pawl-rod toward v said cylinder, and a cam secured on said cylinder and adapted to push said pawl-rod and turn said patterndrum at every revolution of said cylinder, as and for the purpose specified.

11. The combination of the needle-cylinder provided with needles, the loop-wheel, feedrolls, a table, yarn-guides pivoted on said table and adapted to clampbetween their inner ends and said table yarns, and having adj ustable followers provided with downwardlyprojecting rear ends, beveled as described, a pattern-tape having slots to receive said rear ends, the pattern-drum and the carrier-roll, a ratchet secured on said pattern-dru in concentric therewith, a pawl-rod carrying a pawl which engages said ratchet, a spring to force said pawl-rod toward said cylinder, and a cam IIO secured on said cylinder and adapted to push said pawl-rod and to turn said pattern-drum at every revolution of said cylinder, said cam having two cam-surfaces, and an intermediate rest between said cam-surfaces to allowa new yarn to enter before the old yarn is severed, as and for the purpose specified.

12. The combination of the needle-cylinder provided with needles, the loop-wheel, a table, yz'trn-guides pivoted thereon and adapted to clamp the yarns between their ends and said table, the pattern-drum actuating said yarnguides and provided with a ratchet, a pawlrod carrying a pawl to engage Wit-h said ratchet, a cam secured on said needle-cylinder and adapted to push said pawl-rod and turn said pattern-drum at every revolution of said cylinder, and means, substantially as described, for holding said pawl-rod out of the path of said cam, as, and for the purpose specified.

13. The combination of the needle-cylinder provided with needles, the loop-wheel, a table,

yarn-guides pivoted thereon and adapted to clamp the yarns between their ends and said table, the pattern-drum actuating said yarnguides and provided with a ratchet, a pawlrod carrying a pawl to engage with said ratchet, a cam secured on said needle-cylinder and adapted to push said pawl-rod and turn said pattern-drum at every revolution of said cylinder, a frame supporting said pawl-rod, 

